WELCOME TO THE UNIVERSE

solohux:

(I’m putting these two prompts together because they’re super similiar, hope that’s okay!)

Anger, frustration, embarrassment, fear, shame—

Ben slams the door of his private chambers, making the entire hut shake with the force, though he’s sure that his flurry of intense emotions are partly responsible. He’s so overwhelmed; hearing the gossiping whispers and judgemental thoughts of his fellow padawans about his unborn child and the actions that lead to this point.

Whore, disgrace, disappointment, burden. Even as Ben sinks down onto his bed and presses his palms against his forehead, he can still hear their venomous words echoing inside of his minds like clanging gongs. Impossible to ignore.

He runs his hands over the curve of his eight month-pregnant belly, whispering ‘I’m sorry, I’m sorry’ to his baby, wishing he could shield her from the harshness of the galaxy forever. He wishes he could fly away somewhere, just himself and her, away from judgemental eyes.

“Ben?” It’s Uncle Luke, knocking so very softly on the door.

“I don’t want to see anyone.”

“I’m not anyone. I feel your sadness, young one. Please, let me in.”

Wanting comfort, Ben waves his hand and summons the Force to unlock the door and let his Uncle in. Luke, in his cream robes and wearing a gentle expression, enters slowly and closes the door behind him, locking out the prying eyes of everyone else.

“Al’ia said—” Ben starts but Luke puts his hand on his knee, halting him.

“I know what she said and it’s uncalled for. I’ll deal with her but I wanted to check on you first. Your anger almost tore down the meditation chamber.”

“Sorry.”

“Shush, young one,” Luke tuts, raising his eyebrows at his nephew. “Your intense feelings are justified.”

“But a Jedi shouldn’t feel anger like this.”

“A Jedi should not pass judgement on something that has nothing to do with them. That hasn’t seemed to stop half of the padawans making comments about you or the child. I think a little bit of frustration is a drop in the ocean of their prejudice.”

Ben shrugs, keeping his focus on his steady breathing and finding his baby’s presence through the Force. It’s quiet and faint but she’s there, and when he finds her, everything feels right again.

“She’s telling you to be calm,” Luke says, scooting over to sit beside Ben on the bed and then reaching to place his hand on a free space on the bump. “Can you feel her?”

“She’s restless,” Ben frowns. The baby kicks on cue.

“She can feel your turmoil. Strong with the Force, just like you. Your mother always spoke about how she knew you could feel her emotions when she was pregnant. Perhaps it’s a Skywalker thing. Is her father a Force sensitive?”

Ben’s expression falters at the mention of his daughter’s sire. The night that Ben spent with him was the best of his life, only to be ruined in the morning when the stranger adorned a First Order uniform and asked Ben to join him. He failed to tell Ben his surname, only Armitage, hiding the fact that he’s the son of one of the most corrupt men that the Outer Rim has ever seem. Imperials and the dreaded dark side are the reason that his mother doesn’t have a home planet, the reason that his mother and uncle had to be separated at birth, the reason why his namesake isn’t alive today. Ben recalls slapping Armitage’s hand away and feeling every ounce of warm happiness that flooded him in the last twenty four hours evaporate from him with just a single move.

He hasn’t heard from Armi—Hux since.

“No,” Ben replies, finally.

Luke hums, acknowledging. He moves slowly to wipe a stray tear from Ben’s cheek. Ben hadn’t realised that he’d been crying.

“Perhaps it’s time to track him down. You’ve less than a month to go to the birth,” Luke says. “He’d want to know about his child, I’m sure. We can ask your father and Lando to do some research, ask around to find him—”

“I know where he is.”

Luke frowns, “You do?”

“He’s made General. General Hux, the youngest of his rank in the history of the galaxy.”

“If he weren’t a First Order officer, I’d say that’s impressive.” Luke smiles but Ben isn’t amused. He fell so hard for Hux and paid the price for it. “Ben. My boy.”

Luke pulls Ben towards him in a hug, allowing Ben a moment to adjust his belly to get comfortable against him, with Ben’s head leaning against his Uncle’s shoulder whilst Luke’s arms encompass him. The Force surrounds them like a protective bubble, covering them in a warm and comforting presence that Ben feels extend to his baby. Inside him, she settles.

“I miss him,” Ben admits.

“I know,” Luke kisses the top of his head, sending waves of his own calming energy to his heartbroken nephew. “And I think he must miss you too.”

Ben closes his eyes, feeling sleepy and exhausted, feeling safe and protected in his uncle’s presence.

And across the galaxy, on a star destroyed named the Finalizer, General Armitage Hux lies awake in his bed, his thoughts fixated on of the beautiful man he almost had, dreaming of his dark hair and his pale skin, his wanderlust-filled eyes and his sparkling personality. Ben, Armitage repeats the name in his mind, wondering where he is and if he’s safe, but Armitage’s attention is grabbed suddenly by an echoing sound of a baby’s cry, there one moment and gone the next.

Peculiar, he thinks, rolling over and closing his eyes, willing sleep to come. When it does, he dreams of Ben and the life they could have had; a beachside house with a beautiful view, and a pink nursery inside.